Why the heck are you stopping at Sioux City, IA? You should take I-90 from SD and divert north to check out the Twin Cities and then head down through WI and hit Madison and Milwaukee onto Chicago. Believe me that is a lot more interesting than going through IA and Western IL.
Liberate a neighbors lawn ornament and carry it with you...taking photos of it in different places along the way. When you get back, put the ornament back along with a copy of the photos. (not an original idea, but still rather humorous).
That sounds super bad ass...Although, for some reason, I think gas would be way more expensive... Zion National park is worth it...I loved it...Ah, to be young and unemployed with money to blow... j/k...Have fun and keep us up to date with pics at each stop...I agree with going to Pacific Coast hwy... Is this your own car you'll be using? who's your wingman?
that's a lot of gas. how many gallons? $1200 doesnt sound right, but i guess it depends on what you're driving. dont support the companies that import oil from the middle east.
Sioux City is basically just somewhere convenient along the way. When I researched initially, there didn't seem to be anything interesting in Iowa. I doubt we'll be going into Minnesota because I have already been there. But who knows... at that point we may be tired and just want to beeline it back to home. The gas estimate is based on an average cost figure that we found online. I don't know how accurate it will end up being. I worked all last year in Korea teaching English and saved up a bunch of money, so now we're looking to spend some of it before we go back for another year. Gotta get the traveling done while still (relatively) young.
you mean a diesel. hybrids MPG is higher when under city driving, not highway. something like a vw TDI is the way to go.
Between Mesa Verde and the Canyon, take a detour to Moab and visit Arches National Park. You will not regret it.
I hate the twenty minute drive to work. Looking at your outline made my stomach hurt. When I drive out to the Woodlands for a concert I'm already sick of driving and my butt hurts.
One thing you might think about in Iowa is the Field of Dreams, especially since you seem to be aiming for several other baseball-related sites. It's in Dyersville, IA (not far off your route to Chicago). I wouldn't classify it as a must-see but it is cool to walk in and out of the corn, sit on the bleachers where Costner sat, etc. They also have a group of volunteer ghost players that play with kids, put on a little show, etc.
I can say with full confidence that you are not missing much AT ALL by not going to the Alamo. In fact skip SA. Unless you wanna fall asleep.
My one suggestion is to invest in a satellite radio and and a badass system before you go. Maybe even two headphone plugs and two sets of noise cancelling headphones. That's a lot of car time. I did some stuff like that when I was young but we did a lot of drugs. Here's a quick story: 1970 on the way to Cali, we dropped some acid on the winding road up to Carlsbad Caverns, when we got there it was closed. So off we go I drive all night straight through to Hoover Dam, I listened to Rio Grande Mudd about 5 times over in headphones; when we got to Hoover Dam, I got out and was stone deaf, still can't hear worth a damn today. So let that be a lesson to all you kids...Stay in School.
I read you're going to camp it out most of the time, but if you need a place to crash, try hostels, very cheap alternative to hotels. Also might want to stop by the Hoover Dam between Arizona and Nevada, picturesque scene when driving up the dam.
